Editorial

By Sherly Isaac

Leprosy was and still is an incurable disease. God gave detailed instructions in the Old Testament that if a person has leprous scar then how to deal with it. What would be the ceremonial cleansing process etc. The very first thing needed was that the person should be brought to the priest so that he would examine the sore on the skin (Lev. 13: 2-3).

And further we read in Lev 13:4-6 "if the bright spot is white on the skin of his body, and does not appear to be deeper than the skin, and its hair has not turned white, then the priest shall isolate the one who has the sore seven days. And the priest shall examine him on the seventh day; and indeed if the sore appears to be as it was, and the sore has not spread on the skin, then the priest shall isolate him another seven days. Then the priest shall examine him again on the seventh day; and indeed if the sore has faded, and the sore has not spread on the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him clean; it is only a scab, and he shall wash his clothes and be clean." And if a person had leprosy this was the rule for him written in Lev 13:45-46, "Now the leper on whom the sore is, his clothes shall be torn and his head bare; and he shall cover his mustache, and cry, 'Unclean! Unclean!' He shall be unclean. All the days he has the sore he shall be unclean. He is unclean, and he shall dwell alone; his dwelling shall be outside the camp."

What a tragic fate for an unclean leper. Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary says, "In Christ's day no leper could live in a walled town, though he might in an open village. But wherever he was he was required to have his outer garment rent as a sign of deep grief, to go bareheaded, and to cover his beard with his mantle, as if in lamentation at his own virtual death. He had further to warn passers-by to keep away from him, by calling out, 'unclean! unclean!' nor could he speak to any one, or receive or return a salutation, since in the East this involves an embrace." Further it says, "Leprosy was "the outward andvisible sign of the innermost spiritual corruption; a meet emblem in its small beginnings, its gradual spread, its internal disfigurement, its dissolution little by little of the whole body, of that which corrupts, degrades, and defiles man's inner nature, and renders him unmeet to enter the presence of a pure and Holy God" (Maclear's Handbook O.T).

Our heart is afflicted with a disease like leprosy. Bible says in Jer. 17:9, "The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?" But instead of seeking help, most of the people try either to hide or openly live in sin justifying that they are just like the rest of the world. But hiding will not work nor living openly in sin will work. One day leprosy of heart will come to light and you will be exposed. So what we need to do?

First thing we need to do is to acknowledge that we are sinners and our sins must be taken care of by the High Priest - the Lord Jesus Christ. Second thing is to go to the High Priest - The Lord Jesus Christ and ask for the cleansing of our sin. Jesus, unlike other earthly priests or high priests, is able to cleanse our sins and help us to be clean again. He is ready to wash us and remove the leprous scars from our lives.

Lev. 14th chapter talks about the ceremonial cleansing of a person who was declared clean by the Priest. It talks about the long procedure of sacrifices and cleansings which also include shaving of all his hair even eyebrows as we read in Lev 14:8-9 "He who is to be cleansed shall wash his clothes, shave off all his hair, and wash himself in water, that he may be clean. After that he shall come into the camp, and shall stay outside his tent seven days. But on the seventh day he shall shave all the hair off his head and his beard and his eyebrows; all his hair he shall shave off. He shall wash his clothes and wash his body in water, and he shall be clean."

Are your sins forgiven by our Lord Jesus Christ? Have you been made clean by the precious blood of Jesus. The next thing you need to do is to get rid of all your old sins and wash your garments in the precious blood of Jesus so that you could be clean.

Don't be like an unclean leper whose fate is complete tragedy, grief and lamentation forever but come to Jesus and take a new life through Him.

How to handle Worry?

By Sheela Isaac

Prov 17:22 A merry heart does good, like medicine, But a broken spirit dries the bones.Prov 12:25 Anxiety in the heart of man causes depression, But a good word makes it glad.

Worry hits every human being some time or other. Everybody goes through worry some time or other in their lives. Medical science says, "Sickness may not kill you but worry could kill a person." The Bible says, "Worry or depression can dry the bones of a person." The question is why worry hits a person.

1. Unnecessary worry: Worry hits every human being, but are you aware that most of the time we worry about things which never happens in our lives. It is so hard to understand but it is true. How many times do we worry and worry and get anxious in vain and the funny thing is that those worries never materialized in our lives. It means how many times do we lose our peace of mind and stay depressed for no apparent reason.

I remember when my dad left for USA. After three years my mom also got visa and she had to leave India. When both my parents left for USA, we three (my brother, sister and I) had no other choice but it became so necessary to get visa. One day suddenly from nowhere a thought arose in my mind. The thought was, "what if my brother and sister get visa and I am left behind all alone." The very thought scared me to death. I was so scared thinking about it and this thought became a frequent visitor. I still remember that it brought such a torment and panic in my heart that I prayed hard asking God for only one thing. God let this not happen to me ever. I do not want to live alone in hostel or with any relative. Now when I look back I wonder thinking that the thought never materialized and it never happened in my life. But see how I was tormented by this worry. Well the second thought was more horrible than the first one. One day a new thought popped up in my mind. The thought was, "I did not see my dad for the past three years and now my mom also has left and what if I would never see them again. What if one of my parents die before I could get to US. This thought kept frightening me. There were restless days when these two thoughts were tormenting me without any apparent reason. Don't we get such unnecessary thoughts? God is a good God and I am sure He does not put such thoughts in our mind but it is Satan who brings such worrisome thoughts.

2. The solution for worry:Whether worry is genuine or unnecessary there must be a solution for it. The question is where and how should we find solace and comfort in the time of worry. We all know that God is the ultimate comfort and solace for our heart but how many times we forget it and look for peace in wrong places. The Bible tells about the story of Saul. He was a king over Israel. God Himself had appointed him as king. But unfortunately he was not loyal to God and did not walk in His ways. The Bible says that God killed him because he sought answers for his problem from another place than God. Have you ever thought about it? Are you seeking comfort and answers from wrong places? When you are in trouble are you seeking the help of palm readers and witch doctors? Have you ever thought that God can kill you because you are rejecting God and finding help from others who are not ultimate authority over your life? Yes the Bible says, "God killed Saul because he was not seeking God for help." 1 Chr 10:13-14, "So Saul died for his unfaithfulness which he had committed against the LORD, because he did not keep the word of the LORD, and also because he consulted a medium for guidance. But he did not inquire of the LORD; therefore He killed him, and turned the kingdom over to David the son of Jesse."

Many times we trust our own abilities and wisdom don't we? That is why many times we do not find answers for our troubles. I still remember when I had my final exams for Bsc. II year. It was my Botany Ist paper and I did study well and I was very much confident that I knew everything well. The next day I had to go for exam and I was very much relaxed and care free because I felt that there was nothing to fear about. The subject was so thorough that even I knew which topic was in which page. I thought that as the subject was so thorough I could easily get 100 % marks. Well I trusted on my intelligence and in my study and went for exam. When I began to read the questions my head began to spin. I thought how could it be, I knew everything very well but the question paper does not look familiar to me. I read the questions several times again and again. I did poorly in that exam and when I returned I talked to my friend. She was very good in studies and was a topper in my college. She said that we knew the answers very well but the questions were little tricky. She said, "I was also very confused but just by little guess work I answered the questions thinking it could be right. The unfortunate thing was that I knew the answers very well but could not understand the questions because the wordings and biological terms were different. That is what happens when we think something great about ourselves. The IInd paper was not that thorough for me and so I was very scared thinking whether I could get pass marks in exam. There was not much time left to study. So I just prayed hard and glanced through the topics, asked God to help me and give me the right wisdom to understand questions and do well in exam. Well the second paper went very well even beyond my very thinking. When results were out the Ist paper brought just pass marks while the IInd one brought very good marks much higher than what I anticipated. That is what happens when we trust in our own ability and puffs up with pride.

When trouble comes what is the best solution? I would say according to my own experience that God is the best solution. Every time when trouble did hit my family or me I went to God. The best thing is, God answers every time no matter what. He never failed me not even once. If you are going through worry, anxiety, depression I would say, try Jesus than any anti-depressants, palm readers, witchcraft or friends. Palm reading and witchcraft are definitely sinful. So stay miles and miles away from it. Pray to Jesus, place your worries into His hands and let it go and relax. Jesus will always come for your rescue. If you lack money of course you can borrow but if you are sick and doctors’ report does not look good, what would you do? You can't borrow health. So what would you do? Give all your worries to Jesus. Many times we pray and God does not show up right away. It does not mean that He is not listening to you. We pray and the very next moment we expect answers from God but most of the time it does not happen. Somebody said, "God does not come early nor late." Yes God does not come on the very next moment you pray. God's time is different than what we expect and think. In God's calendar there are no 'Quick fixes'. It is we who want everything quickly. When we get sick we think let the sickness go away the very next moment. When we go through financial crisis we think that God should bring lots of money the very next moment. In God's kingdom there are no delays. If you have prayed to Jesus know for sure that He will come for your rescue no matter when and how. Are you in trouble? Look to Jesus. Are you desperate? Look to Jesus. He will definitely come and will rescue you. I know that He came for my family's rescue every time. Every time when we called upon Him He showed up without fail no matter how late it looked to us but He did come. I am sure He will come for you too. May God bless you.

Standing in the Gap - Fasting prayer on 8th Dec.. 2015

As the Bible says in Ezekiel 22:30 "So I sought for a man among them who would make a wall, and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land, that I should not destroy it." And also the Bible says in Numbers 16:48, "And he (Aaron) stood between the dead and the living; so the plague was stopped." We have fasting prayer every second Tuesday of each month. Our next fasting prayer meeting will be conducted on 16th Nov. 2015

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Through the Valley of Death

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